Through the years, a wide variety of toy figures and dolls have been created for entertainment and amusement. Such toy figures and dolls have assumed shapes replicating humans, human infants, animals, as well as fanciful characters. In their efforts to increase the amusement and play value of such toy figures and dolls, practitioners in the art have created a variety of toy figures and dolls having movable features and articulated bodies and limbs. In addition, such articulated and movable figures have been, in some instances, provided with motion energy sources such as wind up motors or battery driven electrical motors. A result has been to provide a variety of movable toy figures and dolls. Another improvement in the continuing efforts of practitioners in the art to provide increased amusement and play value has been found in the creation of toy figures and dolls which respond to external stimulus. Practitioners have, in such efforts, provided toy figures and dolls which respond to such external stimulus as sounds, touch or the contact with external articles such as baby bottles, simulated food articles and the like. Numerous examples of such movable and articulated as well as stimulus responsive toy figures and dolls are found in the art.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,951 issued to Saigo, et al. sets forth a MOVABLE TOY ANIMAL in which an articulated toy animal body supports an internal electric motor and support frame together with operative means to provide motion of the head, eyes, ears and other portions of the toy figure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,696,653 issued to McKeefery sets forth a SPEAKING TOY DOLL which responds with spoken words and/or sentences to touching of selected portions of the doll by the user. A simulated speech system within the toy figure includes prerecorded short messages which are played by the audio system in response to the various touch sensitive areas of the doll.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,908 issued to Oikawa, et al. sets forth a MOTION TOY HAVING ACTION CHANGING STRUCTURE in which a toy body includes a trunk having an internal housing therein, a head, as well as four supporting legs and feet. An electric motor system within the interior of the housing is operatively coupled to at least two of the legs and feet to provide motion of the toy figure.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,906,059 issued to Berger sets forth DOLL WITH SOUND ACTUATED MOVING PARTS having a body portion and legs pivotally secured thereto. Spring means within the body and legs urge the doll from a reclining to sitting position and electromagnetic means are operative to maintain the doll in a reclining position until a sound or touch sensitive means is actuated. Thereafter, the doll slowly rises from a reclining to a sitting position.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,274,729 issued to Refabert sets forth a DOLL HAVING PHOTOCELL-ACTUATED SOUNDING MEANS in which a doll includes motion means including an electric motor and operative linkage coupled to the doll's appendages is operated in response to incident light upon a photoconductive light sensor.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,333,262 issued to Kimura sets forth a SOLAR POWERED TOY having a plurality of legs with angularly related sections connected together. Certain of the sections are mounted for relative turning movement and electric motors powered by solar cells are mounted so as to turn adjacent sections of the legs. As a result, the movements of the legs of the design change in response to exposure of the solar cells to a light source.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,717,363 issued to Refabert sets forth DOLLS OR SIMILAR TOYS which are equipped with a voice or sound produced assembly adapted to emit sounds such as the crying sounds of a baby. The sound mechanism is controlled by an infrared radiation detector located upon the doll's skin which is sensitive to proximity of the user's body and responds thereto.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,602 issued to Rose sets forth a TALKING DOLL RESPONSIVE TO EXTERNAL SIGNAL in which a doll cooperates with a remote signal source to provide an interactive set of doll responsive speech and phrases. The doll includes a radio frequency receiver which receives encoded data from a remote signal source and which under the control of a central processing unit produces simulated audible responses in accordance with the received signals.
U.S. Pat. No. 344,922 issued to Rebentisch sets forth a MECHANICAL CLOCK in which a figure replicating a dog includes means articulating the head, tongue and tail portion of the doll in response to the occurrence of predetermined times. A clock system is coupled to a drive motor to control the timing of the occurrence of figure motion.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,577,903 issued to Gover, et al. sets forth a MECHANICALLY OPERATED FIGURE in which a figure representing a dog in a seated position includes an electrically operable motor driven head motion apparatus together with a source of light illumination.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,119,201 issued to Brown, et al. sets forth a TOY in which an animated toy simulates a snake, rope or the like and is supported within an enclosure. The enclosure opens in response to predetermined stimulus such as sound and causes the object to rapidly extend from the housing in a jack-in-the-box type activity.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,456,383 issued to Gardel, et al. sets forth ELECTRIC ARM AND HEAD MOVEMENT in which a doll includes an internal housing within a doll torso and movable head is coupled thereto. A motor drive mechanism within the torso is operatively coupled to the head and arms of the toy figure and provides motion in response thereto.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,660,932 issued to Raffeli, et al. sets forth a DEVICE FOR CONTROLLABLY CAUSING DOLL'S EYES AND TONGUES TO MOVE AN ELECTRIC CONTROL FOR SAID DEVICE in which a movable eye or tongue for a doll is provided on the outer surface of a hollow substantially hemispherical member rotatably attached to hollow supports in the doll's head. Electromagnetic means are provided to move the eye or tongue under the control of a multivibrator circuit.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,672,096 issued to Johmann sets forth DOLLS in which a doll replicating a human infant is provided with movable head, leg and arm appendages. Motor drive means within the doll torso are operatively coupled to the appendages to provide motion thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,754,351 issued to Glass, et al. sets forth a DOLL having a movable torso and related drive mechanism for driving the doll through stages of a functional mode of operation simulating pouring of a beverage and serving food. U.S. Pat. No. 3,834,071 issued to Terzian, et al. sets forth a DOLL WITH COORDINATED HEAD AND TORSO MOVEMENT in which a doll includes a lower torso portion and an upper torso portion rotatable thereto. A head is movably secured to the upper torso portion and a motor mechanism within the lower torso portion produces a to-and-fro twisting motion of the upper torso and head portions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,699,603 issued to Saigo, et al. sets forth a TOY HAVING INDEPENDENT POWER FEEDER in which an electrically powered articulated figure cooperates with an external battery power source formed to replicate a nursing bottle. The insertion of the bottle nipple in a receptacle within the figure's mouth provides energy for the motion of the figure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,828,526 issued to Schneider, et al. sets forth an ANIMATED TOY FIGURINE in which a toy figure and fluid actuated animation module are operated upon a toy figure assembly. The fluid module is pressurizable by deformation of predetermined parts of the fluid module to pressurize the moving mechanisms of the fluid system and articulate the figure.
While the foregoing described examples of prior art devices have provided increased amusement and play value for toy figures, there remains nevertheless a continuing need in the art for evermore improved animated toy figures.